I'd like to say that I've seen the game in action on a nice HD tv and the visuals are actually pretty impressive. I think they built the engine around big environments with lots of detail and kind of let the character detail suffer, which does hurt the in-game cutscenes. Also, most games that let you customize your face usually don't manage to be as stunning when it comes to facial detail as, say, FFXIII.
There are definitely aspects of the graphics which look way better than FF XII, though, and the mix isn't too jarring. Watch some gameplay vids and try to imagine them blown up at a higher resolution -- this may be a game where the combat/exploration looks better than the cutscenes.
What I can't wait for in this game is the multiplayer. I don't even care if it's a grindfest, I really want a 4 player co-op rpg. The fact that it's a cool looking JRPG with huge character creation options is a pretty awesome bonus.
